The Stimulus Plans: How They Differ

The Senate passed an economic stimulus plan with a price tag of around $840 billion on Tuesday, 13 days after the House passed its own version of the plan with an estimated cost of approximately $820 billion. Now, lawmakers must meet to reconcile the two bills–and multiple competing factions—before the plan can be sent to the White House.

House and Senate Democrats are likely to fight over spending items ignored by the other chamber. Moderate Republicans and Democrats who pushed to cut the size of the original Senate package will be unwilling to see its price rise. The White House wants to restore some funding already cut by those moderates. And Senate Democrats may also go after tax breaks inserted by Senate Republicans.

Grants to rehabilitate and improve energy efficiency on Native American housing programs.

$500,000

$510,000

$10,000

Transportation and housing

Grants for community and economic development projects.

$1,000,000

$0

-$1,000,000

Transportation and housing

Grants for short-term help with rent and housing relocation for homeless families.

$1,500,000

$1,500,000

$0

Transportation and housing

Energy efficiency retrogrades to low-income housing, including new insulation, windows and furnaces.

$2,500,000

$2,250,000

-$250,000

Transportation and housing

Funds for communities to buy and rehabilitate foreclosed and vacant properties.

$4,190,000

$0

-$4,190,000

Transportation and housing

Funds for building and rehabilitating low-income housing using green technology.

$1,500,000

$2,250,000

$750,000

Transportation and housing

Grants for removing lead-based paint in low-income housing.

$100,000

$100,000

$0

Transportation and housing

Funds for rural building projects.

$10,000

$0

-$10,000

Transportation and housing

HUD spending oversight.

$15,000

$2,750

-$12,250

Aid to states

State Fiscal Stabilization Fund

$79,000,000

$39,000,000

-$40,000,000

Tax cuts

$500 credit for single taxpayers, $1000 for couples. House bill phases out at $75,000 for individuals, $150,000 for couples. Senate phases out at $70,000 and $140,000 respectively.

$145,309,000

$139,800,000

-$5,509,000

Tax cuts

Increasing earned income tax credit from 40% to 45% of first $12,570 earned by families with more than three children

$4,663,000

$4,663,000

$0

Tax cuts

Increasing eligibility for refundable portion of child tax credit. House bill lowers income threshold to $0, House to $8100.

$18,272,000

$7,200,000

-$11,072,000

Tax cuts

Education tax credit: $2500 for tuition and books expenses. House version is 40% refundable up to $1000, Senate version is 30% refundable up to $750.

$13,707,000

$12,900,000

-$807,000

Tax cuts

House version offers a refundable credit for 10% of purchase of home, up to $7500, for first-time homeowners buying between April 9, 2008 and July 1, 2009. The Senate version expands the credit to $15,000 and applies it to all home purchases. The Senate version of the credit can only be claimed by buyers who owe income taxes.

Extending bonus depreciation for businesses to 50% write-off for capital expenditures made in 2009

$5,074,000

$5,300,000

$226,000

Tax cuts

Write-off for small businesses for up to $250,000 of capital expenditures incurred in 2009

$41,000

$41,000

$0

Tax cuts

Extending carryback of net operating losses for 2008 and 2009 from 2 years to 5 years -- except for companies receiving government bailout funds

$15,041,000

$17,200,000

$2,159,000

Tax cuts

Allowing businesses to carryback business energy tax attributes from one tax period to another

$0

$0

$0

Tax cuts

Tax credit of 40% for first $6000 of wages for each new unemployed veteran or 16-25-year-old hired. House version includes veterans discharged between 2008 and 2010, Senate version includes veterans discharged between 2001 and 2010.

$208,000

$320,000

$112,000

Tax cuts

Restoration of tougher rules on taxpayers claiming losses incurred by a company before they bought it

-$6,977,000

-$6,977,000

$0

Tax cuts

Allowing some businesses to to claim tax exemption for specific kinds of business debt repurchased in cash in 2009 and 2010.

$0

$813,000

$813,000

Tax cuts

Monetization in lieu of credits for alternative minimum taxpayers and loss taxpayers in 2009.

$0

$805,000

$805,000

Tax cuts

Allowing individuals to exempt up to 75% of some small business stock sales held for more than five years.

$0

$829,000

$829,000

Tax cuts

Temporarily shortening holding period of assets subject to built-in gains tax, from 10 years to seven.

Widens qualification for high-speed intercity rail bonds to facilities with a top speed of 150 miles per hour or more.

$0

$288,000

$288,000

Tax cuts

Increase in funds allocated as part of "new markets tax credit"

$0

$1,050,000

$1,050,000

Tax cuts

Tiered investment tax credit for broadband infrastructure investment.

$0

$110,000

$110,000

Tax cuts

Rule changes to improve marketability of tax exempt bonds.

$3,700,000

$3,700,000

$0

Tax cuts

New tax credit bonds for school building, rehabilitation or repair and other infrastructure projects.

$9,877,000

$4,500,000

-$5,377,000

Tax cuts

Extra authority for state and local governments to issue bonds in 2009 and 2010 to schools working with businesses

$1,045,000

$1,000,000

-$45,000

Tax cuts

Direct payment to state and local governments to replace federal tax credit subsidy for bonds issued in 2009 and 2010

$18,270,000

$4,800,000

-$13,470,000

Tax cuts

House version repeals 3% withholding on government contractors. Senate version delays implementation by one year.

$10,946,000

$291,000

-$10,655,000

Tax cuts

House version makes a one-time payment of $300 to supplementary security income beneficiaries. Senate version also gives payment to social security beneficiaries, disabled people, railroad retirees and disabled veterans who receive benefits.

$4,200,000

$16,700,000

$12,500,000

Tax cuts

Two-year extension of program providing income support and training benefits for workers who lose their jobs because of outsourcing overseas.

$0

$108,000

$108,000

Tax cuts

Prohibiting Customs and Border Protection from demanding that U.S. lumber, steel and other companies repay money they were given from Canadian and Mexican import duties.

$0

$90,000

$90,000

Tax cuts

Curbs to executive compensation at companies receiving financial assistance: The government will raise $3.2 billion from a requirement for participants who paid big bonuses to buy back an equivalent amount of government-held stock. However, the CBO has assessed a net revenue loss because previously taxable compensation will remain within the company, which is not assumed to generate a taxable profit.

$0

$10,847,000

$10,847,000

Aid

Workers who have exhausted regular unemployment compensation will get an extra 7 weeks of extended benefits, to a total of 20 weeks. Workers in 29 "high unemployment" states are eligible for a total of 33 weeks. Weekly benefit will be raised by $25. States will receive tax credit incentives for extending their existing qualification criteria.

$38,735,000

$39,475,000

$740,000

Aid

Extra money for temporary assistance for needy families.

$2,300,000

$2,658,000

$358,000

Aid

Child support enforcement

$1,000,000

$1,150,000

$150,000

Health insurance

Money for states to extend Medicaid coverage to the unemployed and their families, and extending the COBRA eligibility period for some people.